Cervical Cancer Signs, Symptoms And Causes

Signs of Cervical Cancer

Cervical Cancer Causes

Having Several Partners

Several Pregnancies

Cigairette Smoking

Already Infected Hpv Partner

Having High Risk Hpv

Survival rates of cervical cancer patients depend on many certain factors. Some of these factors include, but not limited to: cancer stages, the type of cancer, age of the patient treatment options, etc.

About Cervical Cancer

Cervical cancer is cancer of the cervix. It is a very slow growing process and type of cancer and so therefore; it can sometimes nearly take up to several years before any noticeable signs or cervical cancer symptoms starts to show.

Early symptoms of cervical cancer can, and do vary, but are usually similar in nature.

Normally, a pap smear can, and should show any abnormal cells or dysplasia (abnormal cell changes in the cervix); but finding the abnormal cells does not actually mean that you do have cancer.

Hpv & Cervical Cancer

If you are sexually active and don't do anything to protect yourself, like using protection (condoms) or any other type of safeguarding; you are setting yourself up to be at a higher risk for getting and contracting Hpv.

Most statistics show that the Hpv infection is responsible for nearly almost 80 to 90 % of cervical cancers.

Staying abstinent can also greatly decrease your likelihood of contracting Hpv; of course, like everything else, it's not a guarantee.

How Common Is Cervical Cancer?

Cervical cancer is the second most common type of cancer worldwide. It is also known to be the fifth leading cause of all cancer deaths. Cervical cancer affects nearly 16,000 of women every year. Cervical cancer symptoms do, and can mimic signs of Uterine cancer, endometriosis and other female problems; these are just a few.

Early Detection Can Save Your Life

Remember, early detection and very early stages of cervical cancer can have the best cure rate. It's important to get your pap and pelvic exams yearly and always follow up! Statistics show that cervical cancer in the United States alone, is close to approximately the 8th common type of cancer in women. Prognosis of cervical cancer depends greatly on the staging of the cancer at the time. Experts always suggest you should contact your physician about any concerns.

A Few Things To Remember:

Continuous vaginal discharge that is pale pink or watery and/or any menstrual periods that are heavier than usual and/or last longer than usual, could be anything, but it's always best to get it checked right away. As a woman, you need to understand your body; realize and be conscious of anything that seems peculiar. Your body will tell you. Please also check the resources page for places to contact for more information, links to great organizations and more.

Home Hpv Test May Detect Early Cervical Cancer

A new study suggests there may be a home Hpv test that can detect early cervical cancer. The study had sent out 155 home Hpv test kits via mail, to women in North Carolina. The age ranges of the women were from 30 to 64. All of the women that were mailed these tests, were either uninsured or low income. None of these women have had a pap smear in at least (4) four years unfortunately. According to the study, approximately 12 to 13 percent of the women were injected with high risk Hpv. (High risk Hpv increases the risk of cervical cancer).

Hpv tests cannot detect cervical cancer directly, however; the home test that was given, did find that (3) three percent of the women had pre-cancerous lesions that could lead to cervical cancer. All of these women who had the high risk Hpv, were confirmed by the home-kit. These women were also tested by doctors to make sure there were no missed diagnoses of Hpv or cervical cancer. The new Hpv test is starting to show to be promising, but further research is still in progress.

Important!

Remember, even if you are diagnosed with CIN, even advanced stages, continuing to be monitored and checked by your physician is the best way to detect cervical cancer at it's early stages. Keeping up with your pap smears and exams is crucial, yes, but also listening to your intuition is most important.

Diagnosing Cervical Cancer

Cervical cancer is not diagnosed usually until the later symptoms begin to appear and become much more noticeable. Several factors can either delay, and even sometimes obscure the diagnosis because of the several different types of cancer.

There are other possible reasons for delay of diagnosis could be caused from the types of symptoms that you may be experiencing over-all; or some women may be ignoring the symptoms, and/or thinking it's something else or hoping it will go away. There are also other reasons that could be hindering a woman's decision to get checked- which could include the fact they think they have cervical cancer, or possible other type of cancer, situation, etc; so one will procrastinate out of fear.

For some women, (unfortunately) they wait until it's too late. Remember, symptoms of cervical cancer also can mimic certain types of infection:

About CIN:

What is CIN? CIN stands for: Cervical Intraepithelial neoplasm. Cervical neoplasia could mean other types of changes in the cervix. "Intraepithelial" within the epithelium-(membranous tissue composed of one or more layers of cells). Neoplasia means: new growth.

CIN = Abnormal cells growing within the layers that cover the cervix. First thing you need to know is that CIN is not cancer. CIN means there are changes in the cells of the cervix that could be a pre-cursor to cervical cancer and does not even mean you are going to get cancer. Having CIN basically means you are a higher risk of getting cervical cancer in the future. They diagnose CIN by doing a biopsy and graded by the stage it is in.

There Are (3) Three Stages of CIN

CIN Stage (I) Mild Dysplasia which is usually treated by follow up visits or Hpv testing more frequently due to the fact that this stage can clear up on it's own without intervention. Your doctor may also want to do a colposcopy (a procedure to closely examine your cervix, vagina and vulva for signs of disease) During a colposcopy, your doctor uses an instrument called a colposcope.

CIN Stage (II) Mild to moderate Dysplasia and is usually treated by removing the lesion(s) either by cryotherapy, conization, or LEEP therapy.

CIN Stage (III) Severe Dysplasia to probable cancer (normally treated similar or same as CIN Stage II)
There are some people that develop genital warts from having the Hpv infection; while others don't have any at all. That is why screening is so very important and keeping your follow up appointments. See Stages of Cervical Cancer-

The information provided is solely for educational purposes only and is not intended to cure, treat or advise of any health conditon. If you feel you have a medical condition or emergency, please contact your medical professional. Please read our full disclaimer for further information.